Veteran rocker Morrissey, a vegan and animal-rights activist, cancelled his appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" this week after learning that he would be performing on the same night as cast members from "Duck Dynasty."
The A&E reality television show "Duck Dynasty" showcases a Louisiana family that made its fortune making products for duck hunters.
In a statement released Monday, the singer of the 1980s band The Smiths said that he "cannot morally be on a television program where the cast members of Duck Dynasty will also be guests. Morrissey would be honored to play the show, if 'Duck Dynasty' were removed."
In a separate statement reported on
E Online, Morrissey reportedly said, "As far as my reputation is concerned, I can't take the risk of being on a show alongside people who, in effect, amount to animal serial killers. If Jimmy cannot dump Duck Dynasty, then we must step away."
Kimmel went forward with his interview of the four "Duck Dynasty" which aired Tuesday.
Kimmel, whose show averages about three million viewers a night, commented on the cancellation during his monologue.
"While I respect his stance in this – I really do – there’s a very good reason I didn't dump the 'Duck Dynasty' guys for Morrissey. It's because they have guns," Kimmel joked.
The late night talk show host continued, "If Morrissey is this serious about being associated with meat of any kind, he shouldn’t do any television shows, because I guarantee you when he was on ‘Letterman’ last month, there had to be an Outback Steakhouse commercial in the mix, right? And that’s not acceptable. So Morrissey will not be here tonight. He keeps finding new ways to depress us."
Kimmel then aired a mock commercial in which the Robertsons, the stars of "Duck Dynasty," promoted two new product lines for vegans: "the carrot caller" and "broccoli catcher."
When asked what he thought of Morrissey's decision to not appear on the show, Phil Robertson didn't take it to heart.
"Whoever the guy is, if he wants to eat vegetables, no problem. We don’t mind. If somebody says, 'Y'all eat ducks?' We're like, 'Yeah.' We don't hold it against him at all. Whoever he is, we love him as our neighbor."
Related stories:
Jimmy Kimmel Hearts New Rival Letterman, Has Hate-Hate Relation With Leno
PETA Slams Beyoncé for Sexy Leather Outfit in Super Bowl Show
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.